865 Katina Mountanos: Founder and CEO of Kosterina

27:05Kara Goldin:It's so, so, so good. It's so interesting what you said about olives and that the better olives are the ones at the beginning of the growth cycle versus like a grape, right? That's totally different. So it's really fascinating. And just to like double click on that a little bit. So what happens is when you wait until an olive is very ripe, you get a lot of juice out of that olive. So traditionally, most producers waited for that because they would sell their product by the pound or by the kilo. And people didn't understand the quality difference. When you harvest it early, not too much juice comes out, but the juice that comes out is so potent, so delicious and so high in antioxidant content.

27:45But that's why good olive oil is more expensive because there's literally less juice from the squeeze.

27:50Kara Goldin:There's a ton of education around the category because it is so competitive, even though yours is a better quality product. But what do you think consumers, I feel like you've got two audiences. You've got the grocery buyers, especially if you're not just a D2C company. And then you've got the consumers. Like how do you set yourself apart so that somebody actually purchases the product or puts it on the shelf in the case of retail? Yeah, we really kind of like to put blinders on as it relates to the industry and just stay really core to our mission, which truly is to influence consumer health outcomes.

28:30We want to make people healthier and we want them to enjoy their food and their life more. And so, you know, we will always make the right choices as it relates to health, more so than, you know, business economics. And that's really our gold standard and our North Star and what we're constantly aiming for. So we're always looking to be the cleanest olive oil on the market, the highest in polyphenol content, and still maintaining that incredible taste.

28:56Kara Goldin:This episode of the Cara Golden Show is sponsored by Wayfair. One thing I've learned over the years is that the right piece of furniture can completely change how a room feels. I recently realized my home office needed a refresh. So I ordered a beautiful gray weathered wood bookcase from Wayfair. I couldn't believe it was just under$300. It looks like something that should have cost twice that. and it pulled the entire room together. What really sold me was how easy the whole experience was. You can shop with Wayfair Verified, which is your shortcut to the good stuff. Their team of product specialists vets everything by hand using a 10-point inspection, testing things like quality of materials, functionality and features, and even how long it takes to build.

29:45Kara Goldin:Plus, with over 20 million five-star reviews, you're not buying blind. You can see real customers, real homes, and real feedback before anything hits your cart. And Wayfair has everything for your home in one place. Seating, grills, appliances, storage, lighting, rugs, decor. So you're not bouncing between stores. If putting it together sounds like a headache, they can handle delivery, installation, and assembly. You just pick what you want and they deal with the rest. If a friend told me they were putting off updating their home because of the cost or because they didn't know where to start, I'd tell them to start with Wayfair.

30:26Kara Goldin:I ordered from Wayfair, and honestly, you should too. Ready to upgrade your home for way less? Head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home and get your space ready for less. That's W-A-Y-F-A-I-R dot com. Wayfair, every style, every home. This episode of the Kara Golden Show is brought to you by LinkedIn Hiring Pro. Hi, Kara here. For small businesses, every hire matters, but so does your time. I felt that pressure firsthand. You know, a bad hire isn't just frustrating, it's expensive in time, money, and team morale. And yet hiring the right person can feel like a full-time job on top of everything else you're already doing.

31:15Kara Goldin:Sifting through applications, trying to spot the real standouts, second-guessing decisions, it can get overwhelming fast. That's why having a way to save time without sacrificing quality isn't just nice to have, it's critical. Luckily, LinkedIn Hiring Pro is built for that reality. It's your hiring partner designed to help you hire with confidence by surfacing only the right candidates without turning hiring into another full-time job. Posting a job isn't always the hard part. It's finding, connecting with, and screening the right candidates. Hiring Pro streamlines the entire process from drafting your job to shortlisting candidates and conducting AI-powered interviews for initial screenings.

32:01Kara Goldin:Their updated conversational interface lets you describe what you need in plain language, no recruiter jargon needed. Nearly 60 % of hires find a candidate to interview within a week. With Hiring Pro, you spend less time searching and more time connecting with the right talent. Join the 2.7 million small businesses using LinkedIn to hire. Get started by posting your job for free at linkedin.com slash Kara Golden. Terms and conditions apply. This message is a paid partnership with AT &T Business. Hey everyone, Kara here. Let's get real about those early days of building a business. Not the highlight reel, the actual day-to-day, the friction, trying to manage everything across time zones, across teams, across locations, and realizing how much depends on staying connected.

32:56Kara Goldin:I remember those days at Hint, a retailer call, an order, a decision, all of it. And you realize quickly, connection isn't a nice-to-have, it's the lifeblood of your business. As a founder, you don't want to think about your connectivity. You just need it to work every time. That's why AT &T Business matters. AT &T Business is the reliable provider for small business owners. And when you have that kind of reliability behind you, you can focus on what actually moves your business forward. Powered by AT &T Business, built to work. Get AT &T Business at business.att.com. I always tell new entrepreneurs that it's hard, right, at every stage of growth, and it's exciting to create a product.

33:51Kara Goldin:And then it's exciting when you get it on the shelf at a major retailer that you've been trying to do for so long. But looking back, what was one of the hardest parts of building the business, especially during the first few years? So I would say the hardest part during the first few years was the supply chain management through COVID. Because we launched in January 2020. And then, of course, the world shut down in March. We had so much trouble sourcing glass. Like we were too small to really have any pull with suppliers who were being pulled in so many different directions. So I remember like a point in time where we were literally calling like every factory in the world to see if they could make our glass bottle because we literally just had none.

34:32So I think that period was definitely the toughest just from an operational standpoint. But of course, there have been challenging moments like we we launched in Whole Foods with our one first SKU in August of 2020. And before COVID happened, our entire marketing plan was to sample the product. We were like, oh, once people taste this, they're going to love it so much and they're going to become loyal customers. Guess what? We couldn't sample in a single store for over a year after launch. So yeah, there were some challenges early on because of the timing of our launch as well.

35:03Kara Goldin:So a lot of founders talk about building community, but Posterino seems to have created real daily habits around the brand. How can you share a little bit more about that for people that haven't actually been to your site or enjoyed the brand? Sure. Yeah, we do a lot of content creation just around health and wellness. We want to educate and inspire people to live healthier, to adopt the Mediterranean diet. And so, one, we develop a lot of recipes that leverage our products and in Mediterranean inspired recipes to give people inspiration and ideas for, you know, what to make this weekend, what to make this week.

35:41and a lot of our content in our weekly wellness newsletter is all around broader health. So not just nutrition, although that's a major topic, but also fitness, sleep, meditation, mindfulness, and lifestyle more broadly. And so, you know, that's really how we build community. We try to find people who are interested in these topics and want to learn and want to be inspired by, you know, the type of content that we put out. And so our major platforms really are our email list, Instagram, TikTok, of course, you know, the broader meta as well.

36:14Kara Goldin:So you've expanded a little bit beyond olive oil. Can you talk a little bit about that? Yes, just a little bit. I feel like we do have a pretty broad range of products now, and it's been really exciting. So we sit across four major categories today. Of course, our olive oil, and I should mention every product in the Costa Arena lineup has an underlying health reason for being. So in the case of the extra virgin olive oils, it's those polyphenols that we've been talking about. And, you know, we've got our everyday olive oil. We've got our white bottle olive oil. And more recently, we just launched our extra virgin olive oil shots.

36:53And so this little guy is an ultra high phenolic extra virgin olive oil. So our blue bottle is always over 350 milligrams per kilogram as measured at the time of harvest. Our white bottle is always over 500. and this is always over a thousand. So this is our most potent olive oil. And it's essentially like food as medicine because we recommend taking it, you know, either first thing in the morning or at any point of the day for antioxidant benefits. And so this sort of sits in more as a supplement and you get a slight burn at the back of your throat when you take high polyphenol content olive oil.

37:28That's how you know it's working. That's how you know those polyphenols are there. So interesting. Yeah, it's really fascinating. And the olive oil shot has gone has really exploded on TikTok. It's become a viral trend. So Kourtney Kardashian was first to talk about doing it every day. And more recently, Hailey Bieber was just interviewed by Time magazine and said it was one of her non-negotiables every single morning to take a shot of olive oil and lemon. And that's really putting it into the zeitgeist. It's going viral on TikTok. So we're just really excited to have like just the chops behind us and the product quality behind us to, you know, be there at this moment where people are really looking for this.

38:05Kara Goldin:This episode of The Kara Golden Show is sponsored by Wayfair. One thing I've learned over the years is that the right piece of furniture can completely change how a room feels. I recently realized my home office needed a refresh, so I ordered a beautiful gray weathered wood bookcase from Wayfair. I couldn't believe it was just under$300. It looks like something that should have cost twice that and it pulled the entire room together. What really sold me was how easy the whole experience was. You can shop with Wayfair Verified, which is your shortcut to the good stuff. Their team of product specialists vets everything by hand using a 10-point inspection, testing things like quality of materials, functionality, and features, and even how long it takes to build.

38:54Kara Goldin:Plus, with over 20 million five-star reviews, you're not buying blind. You can see real customers, real homes, and real feedback before anything hits your cart. And Wayfair has everything for your home in one place. Seating, grills, appliances, storage, lighting, rugs, decor, so you're not bouncing between stores. If putting it together sounds like a headache, they can handle delivery, installation, and assembly. You just pick what you want and they deal with the rest. If a friend told me they were putting off updating their home because of the cost or because they didn't know where to start, I'd tell them to start with Wayfair.

39:36Kara Goldin:I ordered from Wayfair and honestly, you should too. Ready to upgrade your home for way less, head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home and get your space ready for less. That's W-A-Y-F-A-I-R.com. Wayfair, every style, every home. This message is a paid partnership with AT &T Business. Hey, everyone, Kara here. Let's get real about those early days of building a business, not the highlight reel, the actual day-to-day, the friction, trying to manage everything across time zones, across teams, across locations, and realizing how much depends on staying connected. I remember those days at Hint, a retailer call, an order, a decision, all of it.

40:26Kara Goldin:And you realize quickly, connection isn't a nice-to-have, it's the lifeblood of your business. As a founder, you don't want to think about your connectivity. You just need it to work every time. That's why AT &T Business matters. AT &T Business is the reliable provider for small business owners. And when you have that kind of reliability behind you, you can focus on what actually moves your business forward. Powered by AT &T Business, built to work. Get AT &T Business at business.att.com. So I'm so curious, like I haven't done it obviously, but the olive oil shot, like, is it, is the experience kind of like you have to get used to it a little bit because oil, I don't know, like even though you dip with it, it might, I don't know if it's different.

41:24It is different. It is different. I'm excited for, to try, to send it to you so you can try, but it is a little bit of a different experience. Like I love the taste of olive oil, obviously. I actually put this on my gluten-free toast every morning, but most people just take a shot of it or put it in their smoothie and you do get a little bit of pepperiness. So it's similar to, have you ever taken like a ginger and turmeric shot? Yeah. You know how that can be like a little harsh? This is not like that. This is less, you know, peppery or harsh than that. And so you had asked about our other categories as well that I want to make sure I mentioned, which are our vinegars and our olives.

42:00And so we make two different types of vinegars. We make dark balsamic vinegars, which are your traditional balsamics in a few different flavors like fig, walnut, and dark chocolate. And those balsamics are just very high quality and thick. They use a high percentage of grape must. And so you get like a really thick, high quality, delicious balsamic. And fermented foods are great for the gut microbiome, and that's our reason for being. and then we make four different fruit vinegars which are actually drinkable have you ever taken apple cider vinegar for health purposes i have i have yeah yeah so you may know the health benefits of acv are blood sugar stabilization you'll get a smaller spike after like eating a carb heavy meal if you drink vinegar before during or after that meal and so you know i couldn't stomach the taste of acv and wanted to create something that tasted much much better so we worked with one of our producers and developed our crushed strawberry, tangerine and blueberry, and now cucumber lemon vinegars that do just that.

43:01And they're delicious in, of course, salad dressings, but also cocktails and mocktails at all Whole Foods, but they just launched nationally at Walmart. So that's been our biggest, you know, scale launch to date on the vinegar side.

43:13Kara Goldin:As you head into retailers like Whole Foods and Target and Walmart, what changes when you go from selling directly to consumers to competing in that crowded retail shelf space that even though it might be a big space in certain stores, it's still limited. Yeah, I think it's our biggest challenge has been maintaining our design because we're just obsessed with the aesthetic of how this looks. We want it to evoke Greece. We want to evoke the Mediterranean and this like minimalist approach on our olive oils, vinegars, and olives. And so at shelf, a lot of brands do scream with all the different logos and all the certifications they've got.

43:56And so it's a matter of it's a balance in educating the consumer on everything that this product is, but still maintaining that beauty at shelf.

44:04Kara Goldin:As a founder, you know, it's always a little different than maybe what you thought it would be. And I love getting phone calls and emails back from people who were on my team who years later decide to launch their own. And they're like, I had no idea. I am either so sorry, or how did I not really realize this? Because there are aspects that, you know, when you're leading a company, too, you, you know, you're not going to sit here and tell the team every single detail. You want to keep them going and motivated, but then there is hard stuff that goes on. So what's something that founders, you believe, consistently underestimate about scaling a consumer products company that maybe you learned from your own experience?

44:53Oh, my gosh. Cash management, for sure. No one told me that if you have a little bit of success and growth, you're never going to have any cash. And that's because you're constantly reinvesting it into building inventory for your next launch or your next big thing or your next category. And so just being able to maintain healthy, sustainable growth and manage cash to ensure, you know, that growth can be there in the future has been the hardest part, mostly because of building inventory. And, you know, we have debt partners and there's a lot of options out there, but it's still always been the most difficult part of the job.

45:30Kara Goldin:So you had come from the private equity investment banking, I guess, world prior to launching or prior to going to business school and then prior to launching your brand. What did you learn from that experience that you think is really valuable outside of knowing how to build a business plan? I mean, what aspect do you think is really important? It was an amazing foundation. I mean, I was just in Excel looking at financial models and I had a deep understanding of accounting, which I think you don't realize how important it is in launching a business and understanding like how does the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement all work together?

46:08Like there are some boring but essential elements of how, you know, those three financial statements interact that are critical for managing for cash management and for managing the business ongoing, knowing that, you know, the balance sheet is a point in time, that the income statement is, you know, for certain periods of time, and then how that works with the cash flow statement. So I think the deep understanding of accounting from building financial models was one of the most important things I learned in investment banking.

46:37Kara Goldin:Yeah, definitely. And when you are growing a company, which we all hope to be able to do, when you're actually above plan, you're celebrating, but it also kind of messes up the rest a little bit. You have to make adjustments along the way. And I think that that can be really, really tricky. I would say velocity is, you know, key. It's not just about getting on the shelf, but also pulling off the shelf and things like that early on that I think were really, really key to Hint's success in particular. But if you could change one thing about how Americans are thinking about food and health, what would it be today?

47:21Kara Goldin:What is like frustrating? I mean, I guess there's still this education six years later that you know so much about. What do you wish you could change about Americans' perception about the industry? I think that we've normalized some things that are really affecting consumer health, you know, over the years. And like basic things, like I feel like no one should really be eating from like that coffee shop, you know, bakery case. No one should be, we shouldn't be feeding our children goldfish or Doritos and, you know, traditional Gatorade. It's like things that are generally recognized as okay that we are using and eating and consuming on a recurring basis that really just we need to eliminate.

48:10And I think personally, I've learned just how different I feel when I can eliminate some of these, you know, ultra processed foods or things that I know can adversely affect my health over time that I've now don't want them anymore. And so I just wish that we could be a little bit more clear about, you know, what people are consuming and understanding, normalizing things like the deli sandwich or, you know, just some of those foods that I mentioned that everyone thinks is OK or like, you know, Dunkin' Donuts drinks with so much sugar that we really need to educate people about. I love that.

48:44Kara Goldin:So, Coasterina, you launch with OneSkew. You built it into a bunch of different categories. If you could tell people to purchase one item to try it, what are you most proud of? Whether it's the number one seller or what is something that you produce that is just so awesome and so unique? Tara, you're making me choose a favorite child. It's really hard. I think I would say it's a little bit of a cheat, but I would say the extra virgin duo, which is our white bottle and blue bottle olive oils, because, you know, the white bottle lives on your table, dipping, drizzling, salad dressings, etc. And the blue lives right next to your stove.

49:28And, you know, you're cooking your eggs with it in the morning, you're sauteing with it and you're using it on roasted vegetables and proteins. So I think, you know, those extra virgin olive oils have been voted some of the best olive oils in the world in 2026 and even before that. And so just integrating those into your daily routine is a huge upgrade. I love it.

49:48Kara Goldin:Well, Katina, thank you so much. This was so terrific and educational and inspiring, for sure. You took something everyone thought they understood olive oil and have shown us what most people can't actually or haven't really thought about, I guess, and created a product that is so, so yummy. For everyone listening, check out Costa Rina and we'll have all the info in the show notes, but also follow Katina to learn more about everything they're doing at Costa Arena and all of the great content that they're putting out too. So thank you again, Katina, and thank you everyone for listening. I'll see you next time on The Kara Golden Show.

50:30Thank you, Kara. I appreciate it.

50:31Kara Goldin:Thanks again for listening to The Kara Golden Show. If you would, please give us a review and feel free to share this podcast with others who would benefit. And of course, feel free to subscribe so you don't miss a single episode of our podcast. Just a reminder that I can be found on all platforms at Kara Golden. I would love to hear from you too, so feel free to DM me. And if you want to hear more about my journey, I hope you will have a listen or pick up a copy of my Wall Street Journal bestselling book, Undaunted, where I share more about my journey, including founding and building, Hint. We are here every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

51:14Kara Goldin:Thanks for listening and goodbye for now. This episode of the Kara Golden Show is brought to you by LinkedIn Hiring Pro. Hi, Kara here. For small businesses, every hire matters, but so does your time. I felt that pressure firsthand. You know, a bad hire isn't just frustrating, it's expensive in time, money, and team morale. And yet hiring the right person can feel like a full-time job on top of everything else you're already doing. Sifting through applications, trying to spot the real standouts, second-guessing decisions, it can get overwhelming fast. That's why having a way to save time without sacrificing quality isn't just nice to have, it's critical.

52:02Kara Goldin:Luckily, LinkedIn Hiring Pro is built for that reality. It's your hiring partner designed to help you hire with confidence by surfacing only the right candidates without turning hiring into another full-time job. Posting a job isn't always the hard part. It's finding, connecting with, and screening the right candidates. Hiring Pro streamlines the entire process from drafting your job to shortlisting candidates and conducting AI-powered interviews for initial screenings. Their updated conversational interface lets you describe what you need in plain language, no recruiter jargon needed. Nearly 60 % of hires find a candidate to interview within a week.

52:45Kara Goldin:With Hiring Pro, you spend less time searching and more time connecting with the right talent. Join the 2.7 million small businesses using LinkedIn to hire. Get started by posting your job for free at linkedin.com slash Kara Golden. Terms and conditions apply. This message is a paid partnership with AT &T Business. Hey everyone, Kara here. Let's get real about those early days of building a business. Not the highlight reel, the actual day-to-day, the friction, trying to manage everything across time zones, across teams, across locations, and realizing how much depends on staying connected. I remember those days at Hint, a retailer call, an order, a decision, all of it.

53:33Kara Goldin:And you realize quickly, connection isn't a nice to have, it's the lifeblood of your business. As a founder, you don't want to think about your connectivity. You just need it to work every time. That's why AT &T Business matters. AT &T Business is the reliable provider for small business owners. And when you have that kind of reliability behind you, you can focus on what actually moves your business forward. Powered by AT &T Business. Built to work. Get AT &T Business at business.att.com.